From the bottom of my heart, thank you to my p4tr0ns: Morpheaus, and RTB <3 <3 <3
Become a p4tr0n too and read up to FOUR chapters ahead!:
h t t p s : / / w w w . p a t r e o n . c o m / t r a s h w i t h g l a s s e s
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It was one of the geography classes.
"And the further you go to the north, the colder the climate gets. If someone walks enough in that direction, they will find the world as it once was before the gods prepared the land for us; mountains of ice crushing the earth extending themselves until where the eyes can see.
You can also find the place where teacher Glance and I first met up. I believe the craters are still there.
I miss the north, it was an interesting place to explore, and I'd like to see that place again in the future."
No one dared to ask about teacher Visk Cera and teacher Glance's relationship. Even I, who was very much curious.
"Now, who wants a treat?"
"Oh, me, me!", I raised my hand.
She still was my favorite teacher!
We were on the market outside the school, buying supplies for our travel soon. Well, Spruce was buying us supplies.
"Dried meat (which I made sure to contain no coyote in it), bread, grains, water canteens, blankets…", the little person listed everything Ike and I were carrying on our increasingly heavier pack frame we carried with our backs and heads.
"Wait, why specifically no coyote meat?", I asked, curious.
"What? Oh, yeah, yeah, lack of memory and all. Well, because if you eat meat of your own animal clan, you die."
"Oh… I see."
As the little person got back to exchanging his surprisingly great fortune in ornaments and precious stones, the awkward swordsman approached me and whispered into my ear: "Are you sure about this?"
"What? The plan is yours, aren't you?"
"N-No, I meant… bringing him with us", Ike nodded toward Spruce, looking almost guilty for saying that.
"Ah… Well, don't worry, I can protect him", I winked at Ike, and we continued our shopping.
Spruce might not have fighting abilities, but he was one of us. Plus, without him, we wouldn't be able to buy our traveling supplies (apparently Ike's father had invested all of his fortune to get him into the Bear Mountain, so he couldn't ask for more).
As the days passed and the teleportation moment approached, I got more and more excited, but the apprenticeship didn't stop being interesting.
"The Second Era, or Era of the Divine, started when the ice retreated, and the peoples found a whole new world to explore and settle in, then filled with food provided by the gods. Divine intervention was much, much more common than it is now, and the divine walked amongst men. Technically, we're inside one of them right now! This giant bear once fought a terrible water dragon which emerged from the primordial waters in which the world turtle swims, and died in combat… At least physically, for he exists now as the keeper of dreams, being a sacred place that due to its strong connection with the higher worlds, exhales very strong magic.
In fact, back then we were so much closer to the higher worlds, that even our language was more real, and we could speak with animals and trees, and everything alive. And the Gods taught the peoples many things, from farming to kneading, and fishing, and more, but most importantly, they fed us with the food of the gods. However, this had its price: we became dependent on them. And when they vanished, apparently for no reason, taking the food of the gods with them… Many societies collapsed. Now, the world find itself in a state similar to that of the first era: most peoples live nomadic lives, and ruins lay everywhere. Many presume that we have just gone through the end of the world… while others prophesize that this is yet to come.
And here is where our school comes in place.
More specifically, the portals come into place. They are like roots that cross the entire world, connecting it from one end to another and all over. Many assume that they have been created by the gods, but my old great great grand mother swore for her life that they were already in place before the Second Era, when the gods became more present to us. Even the defense system of the school, which prevent anyone who is not worthy to enter this place has not been set by us, the staff of this school, but by higher powers! Either way, the portals and this school are the last thing that keeps the world together, and prevent us from becoming completely lost. We already lost connection with the Gods, and with the other living beings, we can't lose each other too. This is why we must keep this place a safe haven for all. To share knowledge and guide the world into a new era", she explained the last part holding her rat pendant.
"Teacher Grace", I raised my hand, catching the attention of the old tree-lady. "Did you just say that we were closer to the 'higher worlds'?"
"Did I? Oops!", she laughed. "Well, do not dwell on that too much. With time, your teacher of Principles of Magic will explain all about it properly."
At that, I remembered when Hyber, the boy who was sleeping during Glance's class, told me said we could explode our own heads if we tried to learn too much too quickly, so I just tried to be patient and listen to teacher Grace.
In any case, the week was almost ending, and I had other business to focus on.
I would be teleported and go into an adventure with my friends soon enough!
The day had come, and the three of us were standing in line in the portal room, and with each beating of the drum we got closer to being teleported.
"Oh, man, I hope we get teleported right before an apex predator or something!", Spruce said, smiling. "It's more than time already for me to show off my potential too. You two had already your time to shine, now it will be my time!"
Ike threw me a glance at that, but I tranquilized him with a confident smile. He didn't need to worry about Spruce, I could easily protect him.
"Well, at least these teleportations are supposed to be completely safe", Ike sighed.
Then it was our time to be teleported.
"To the Red River!", the portal overseer screamed.
The drum was beaten.
And we ended up right before an apex predator.